Method Acting: An opposites attract, found family romance (Center Stage Book 2) by Adele Buck (web based ebook reader txt) 📕

hers, warm and strong, and Alicia nearly dissolved from weariness and the still-unfamiliar feeling of letting someone else take care of her.

“Fine,” she said, closing her eyes. “Just this once I’ll let you torture me.”

He leaned over, and she shivered as his lips tickled the edge of her ear. “Just once?”

“Mmm. Okay. Whenever you like, then. Torture away.”

His breath ghosted over her skin as he chuckled, and she almost whined when he straightened up, but the taxi was slowing. Cracking her eyes open, she saw that they had already arrived at Colin’s house. He paid the driver and tugged at her hand as he opened the door. “Come on inside.”

She hardly needed the urging. Getting out of the taxi, she trailed after him and waited as he unlocked the door. Inside, he led her upstairs. Instead of turning into the master suite, he walked down a short hallway into the guest bathroom. Her eyes widened, and she gave him an incredulous smile.

“You have a soaking tub,” she said, gazing in wonder at the huge oval of white ceramic. It looked long enough that she could almost lie flat in it.

“An Englishman needs the occasional bath to be reminded of home. And I am too tall for the tiny tubs that American builders think are sufficient.” Leaning over, he plugged the drain and turned on the taps. “See if the water temperature is to your liking,” he said. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

In a daze, Alicia adjusted the temperature, staring, mesmerized by the rushing water. A few minutes later, Colin reappeared, wearing a tee shirt and shorts and bearing a glass of white wine.

Setting the wine on the vanity, he turned and pulled a light green, tennis-ball-sized object out of a low cabinet. He tossed it in the water, and it began to fizz and roll, the scent of lemongrass filling the air.

“Now,” he said, unbuttoning her shirt. “Let’s get you out of these clothes and into the water.”

She was so tired. Her muscles felt rubbery, her eyes gritty. The kids had taken more out of her than she’d expected. Colin’s hand reached up to cup her cheek, and his lips whispered across her own in a light kiss.

“Get in.”

Gripping the sides, she stepped in and slid down, the warm water covering her almost to her chin. Her body nearly melted. Colin picked up her clothes and turned off the tap, handing her the wine glass.

“Soak until you don’t want to anymore. I’ll be downstairs.”

Colin brought Alicia’s clothes into his bedroom and folded them, piling them on the chair. He wondered if he should broach the possibility of her keeping some things here.

Leaving his bedroom, he paused in the hallway. Gentle splashing came from the guest bath, and he had to restrain himself from going in and just looking at Alicia. He could stare at her for hours together if given the opportunity, but he had to admit that it might come off as more than a little creepy.

Instead, he headed downstairs to the kitchen, opening the fridge and taking a quick inventory. Some leftovers from a couple of evenings ago, some miscellaneous ingredients he couldn’t mentally assemble into a coherent meal. Sighing, he closed the door. Maybe he would just take a page out of Alicia’s book and see if she wanted to order in.

Dinner tentatively decided on, he opened his laptop to check the news. He clicked on a highlighted article about the television show Alicia would shortly be filming, a satisfied smile spreading across his face as he read the piece. The buzz for the show was off the charts and expectations were running high. No mention of Alicia or her role, but he had to admit that her profile probably wasn’t high enough to warrant publicity.

Yet.

A warm glow spread through Colin as he reflected on Alicia’s talents, her skills. He was sure she could succeed just about anywhere, and D.C. was a likelier location than most. Was there anything in New York, other than the promise of a richer supply of work, that might tempt her back?

He would see if he could make the proposition to stay more attractive.

Blinking, Alicia leaned over the edge of the tub to place her empty wine glass on the floor. She took a deep breath and sank under the waterline, scrubbing her fingers over her scalp and turning her head to let the water flow through her hair. Rising to the surface, she sluiced the water off her face and slicked her hair back from her forehead. Reluctantly, she pulled the plug, letting the water flow down the drain.

She stepped carefully out of the tub and plucked a towel off the nearby rail, drying her body, a small amount of energy returning. Looking around the bathroom, she realized that Colin had taken her clothes. She quirked an eyebrow and wrapped the towel tightly around her, padding into the master bedroom.

Scanning the room, she saw the neatly folded pile on the armchair in the corner. The dress shirt Colin had been wearing today hung half out of a hamper near the closet. She extracted her panties from the pile of her clothes and pulled them on. Instead of donning the rest of her outfit, she walked over to the hamper and plucked Colin’s shirt out, shrugging it on and buttoning it slowly, inhaling the scent of his body that rose off of it with a languid smile.

Walking downstairs, she went back to the kitchen, and found Colin sitting on a bar stool at his kitchen island, looking at his laptop. He lifted his head, and a slow grin spread across his face as his eyes traveled from her bare feet up her legs to her body clad only in his shirt.

“That’s a fetching frock on you.” His voice was neutral, but his eyes glittered with humor and heat.

“I found it in your room. I thought maybe I was supposed to wear it,” she replied.

Colin reached out, fingering